Steven Kenny
The Asteroid Hat, oil on panel, 12″ x 12″, 2021
The Brink, oil on linen, 36″ x 18″, 2021
The Glade II, oil on canvas, 30″ x 22″, 2021
The Ribbons, oil on canvas, 40″ x 28″, 2015
The Wood Carvers, oil on linen, 28″ x 20″, 2021
Little Planet, oil on linen, 32″ x 22″, 2021
Tiger Tamer, oil on canvas, 24″ x 30″, 2021
The Procession, oil on canvas, 34″ x 20″, 2021
Artist Statement
My paintings most often focus on the human figure paired with elements found in nature. These surreal, symbolic juxtapositions are intended to work on at least two levels.
The first level alludes to the fact that we are an integral part of the natural world and subject to its laws. This seems like an obvious statement, until we step back and objectively assess our symbiotic relationships with each other and with Earth. Depending on your perspective, these relationships fall somewhere on a scale between harmonious and dysfunctional.
The second level turns the lens around to look inward upon the stewardship of our own emotional, intellectual, and psychological landscapes. Using the same pictorial subject matter allows me to make references to our individual journeys of self-exploration and discovery. Again, depending on who is holding the compass, we are either lost or on the right path to self-discovery.
At the very least, I desire to create images of beauty and mystery that allow viewers to find in them their personal, individual significance.
About the Artist
Steven Kenny is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, which awarded him a bachelor’s degree in fine arts in 1984. During his final year of art school, Steven Kenny studied independently in Rome, Italy, in the European Honors Program. His direct exposure to European art and, in particular, to the Baroque works of the Italian, Dutch, and Flemish schools, significantly influenced his painting style; using Old Master oil painting techniques, Steven Kenny creates images that visually are reminiscent of the Renaissance and Northern Baroque periods though they are rooted firmly in the realm of contemporary art.
After college, Steven Kenny settled in New York City, where he gained notoriety as a freelance commercial illustrator whose clients included Sony Music, Time magazine, United Airlines, Microsoft, and many other corporations. His illustrations repeatedly received awards from the Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts magazine, and Art Directors’ Club of New York.
In 1997, Steven Kenny turned away from illustration to devote himself to the fine arts. His surreal compositions, which most often combine the human figure with elements from nature, both comment on our interactions with the environment and symbolically allude to the multi-faceted dynamics of human nature generally.
Steven Kenny is the recipient of grants from the Virginia and Franz Bader Fund and Joyce Dutka Arts Foundation, as well as fellowships from the Virginia Commission for the Arts, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and Creative Pinellas (Florida). Among his other honors is a long list of reviews, radio and television interviews, podcasts, and cover or other articles about his work in such publications as Miroir magazine, Jez magazine, Tampa Bay Times, and International Opulence magazine. He also frequently gives lectures and gallery talks.
Steven Kenny’s paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the State College of Florida, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, on the Tarpon Springs, Florida, campus of St. Petersburg College; Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, Florida; and Museo Arte Contemporanea Sicilia. In addition, his work is in many private art collections around the world.
Steven Kenny is represented by Angela King Gallery, New Orleans, Louisiana; and Leslie Curran Gallery, St. Petersburg, Florida.
Widely shown throughout the United States and around the world, Steven Kenny’s work can be seen June 19, 2022 – July 10, 2022, in the group show “Small Works” at Beinart Gallery, Brunswick, Australia. A solo exhibition at the same gallery is planned for November 6-27, 2022.
Born in Peekskill, New York, Steven Kenny currently lives in Check, Virginia.
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